EXISTO
Coke Sams
USA, 1998, 93 min.
East Coast
Premiere at the Hamptons Film Festival, October 24, 1999
by Barbara Kent
Who knew that Nashville had an arts underground? Outrageous
indie film EXISTO is a radical musical-comedy out of Nashville that fights
the good fight. Existo, a guerrilla performance artist and leader of an indiscriminate
assortment of social-misfit artists and dissident heretics, combats the Fundamentalist
Christian Right, now in political power. Their righteous leader, megalomaniac televangelist
Armand Glasscock, played with icy vacuity by Mike Montgomery, has outlawed art. Glasscock
appropriates the airwaves and spews aphorisms and "news" 24/7, assuring
the public that through prayer, heís ìdiverted an asteroid from certain collision
with our planet.î Disgusted with Glasscockís oppression, the Leftist art community
appeals to their former leader and fellow artist Existo, to return and lead the rebellion.
The resistance is headquartered in the SEWER, an underground performance nightclub
owned by the languorous Cheshire-catty drag-queen Colette, camped UpToHere by Gailard
Sartain. Existo, legendary performance artist psychotically portrayed by Bruce Arntson,
comes out of exile imposed by the political climate, and returns to the SEWER bouncing
on a soft, glowing white sphere. Each empty click of the .38 he jams into his temple
as he bounces elicits a "Fuckin' A" of indignation from his lips. After
the third rhythmic epithet, the audience hurls the first salvo by uttering the battle
cry with him, "Fuckin' A!"
Existo and his omnipotent girlfriend Maxine (Jackie
Welch), strategically
deploy the assault on family values, the soul of the Christian Right.
"Until all forms of art are subsidized...Until the workers run the factories...Until
condoms are dispensed with crayons...Until every flag comes with its own match...Until
the sacred school prayer is replaced with a minute of angst and foreboding...I will
cry." weeps Existo in his act. Inspired by Existo's passion, the band of insurrectionist
artists storm the streets flagrantly committing illicit art in public. The campaign
is wildly victorious and a newscast over the ubiquitous state-controlled television
warns viewers "If you have to go out and you see art, do not--I repeat, do not--try
to interpret it yourself. Call 911 and let the Art Squad defuse it!"
Biting satire that is particularly close to our hearts and a flat out down and dirty
rock and roll score by the film's co-writer and star, Bruce Arntson equip EXISTO
with enough heat to be both disgracefully entertaining and socially competent. Jim
Mayís murky cinematography evokes the climate of Bladerunner or Delicatessan
, a frightening and uncomfortably real "future."
An outstanding cast entirely from Nashville includes
Jenny Littleton as Penelope, a fluff-femme sent to seduce Existo to the dark side;
Mark Cabus as Rupen,the ambisexual Judas; Gailard Sartain as Colette the sensual
proprietor of the SEWER
Shot in 20 days for next to nothing, Existo's director,
Coke Sams says "We're first and foremost entertainers, so we focused on that,
while at the same time trying to reinvigorate the left, topple the powers that be
and save the world--all with one eccentric musical." Directed and co-written
by Coke Sams; Produced by Peter Kurland and Clarke Gallivan; co-written by and starring
Bruce Arntson.
Existo bounces into town on a friendly
penis-shaped pogo stick on December 9 at the Tribeca Cinema. Seating is limited and
you do not want to miss it.
(c) Bkent, 1999
Baby Sings the
Blues
by Barbara Kent
Johnny Lang is clearly posessed--whether by demons, a god, the Muse or the spirit
of some long deceased blues genius is less clear. Head thrown back, white throat
exposed, a keening wail and a guitar chord simultaneously escape his body. This hot
manchild gave it up and SOME were moved to tears. Where does an 18 year old boy get
the right to make middle aged women weep?
Langís guitar was lethal as he battled the blues with his accompaniest head to head.
His smoky voice belies his age as he rips out the lyrics to Angel of Mercy, and Breakin
Me transcends heart break.
Born in Fargo, North Dakota on January 29, 1981, Jonny Lang has spent that short
time making a BIG name for himself. His A&M record debut Lie To Me in 1997 catapulted
the youth into the international spotlight. Newsweek named Lang the youngest 
member of the ìCentury Club,î the 100 Americans whose "creativity
or talent or brains or leadership will make a difference in the years ahead.î
In 1998 when the Los Angeles Times asked BB King to name the two most promising new
blues players, King said, "Jonny Lang's 16, so he's got youth and talent with
it. When I was young, I didn't play like I do today. So these kids are starting at
the height I've reached. Think what they might do over time. And even if they didn't
add anything else, they've got still added youth. So I'm proud of them and grateful."
Lang fulfilled a dream when given the opportunity to play with B.B.
He has opened for Jeff Beck, Aerosmith and the Rolling Stones and had his
own hour long special for the Disney channel. In July of this year, Lang peformed
for President Clinton and the First Lady and played side by side with legendary bluesman
B.B. King for the "Tradition and Legends of the Blues Performance," staged
on the South Lawn at the White House. Lang presented President and Mrs. Clinton with
an autographed Fender guitar. Taped by PBS the event will be broadcast on television
in November. Lang was invited to perform at Mick Jagger's 56th birthday at the Stones
estate in the South of France where Lang jammed with Jagger and guests Bono, Elton
John, and Ron Wood.
Johnny Lang is the perfect opening act for Jeff Beck. More ìtechno-Beckî than the
soulful-Beck of the past, his undiminished precision was a powerful counterpoint
to Langís emotional contribution. Jennifer Batten his guitar accompaniest floated
like a beautiful angel but kept a respectful distance from the Master. Her deft performance
was as testosterone driven as Beckís-- explosive and hard-biting. The musical mix
was dizzying, a heady concoction of techno, blues and rock, with the razor edge of
maturity on Becksí side.
Simply put, Lang played for the chicks, and Beck played for the dudes. I have heard
a lot of Beck in my life. I hope to live long enough to hear as much of Lang.
WEB SITES:
http://misstique.simplenet.com/jonny.htm This one is Johnny Lang only fairly decent site, lots of
pictures and lots of links.
http://www.sonicnet.com
Is one of my favorite spots...has both
artists and just about anyone else you can think of with video, audio, and plenty
of stills.
by Barbara Kent
bkent@aol.com
NYC-November 10, 2000
The Screening Room/ 54 Varick Street/ Tribeca
"Life is often meaningless, but good fiction never is..."
Under the hot eye of the Mojave sun the peeling paint and faded dreams of legal
prostitution are embarassingly revealed in ANGEL'S LADIES, a sympathetic film-study
of the flesh industry.
Mack and Angel Moore, previously undertakers in Oregon bought a brothel in Beatty,
Nevada several years ago. Ironically, they are aged, (Mack was 70 and Angel 55 when
they bought the ranch) Christian Fundamentalist Swingers, who feel that the "girls"
who work for them are like their "children."
The "children" don't feel strong family ties however, and like ungrateful
children, complain about "daddy's" advances, car privileges, money, and
mommy making a little extra cash by turning the occasional trick on the side.
The strength of thise film is not witty dialogue or cohesive story line, but it's
existentialism and evocative, surreal images. The camera is the real star as it painfully
captures fragile details, almost by accident. Angel's tears flow into the desert
unchecked and at first we are compassionate, and then confused -- understandable
that she weeps for her dead sons, but as many tears for a horny trick with no money?
ANGEL'S LADIES is a fine, Zen-like docrumentary. Watch it as the stream of consciousness
it is, but have no expectations. The forgiving desert offers sanctuary to all, and
we are merely voyeurs peeking through our fingers.
BKent, Y2K
Playing through November 16, show time 6:45 pm and 10:45 pm.
Reviews
TV
GUIDE
New York Times:
'Angel's Ladies': A Brothel as a Dream Come True, for Owners
By LAWRENCE VAN GELDER
Anyone who thinks sex is fun ought
to meet Mack and Angel Moore.
Resembling in their characteristic grimness
nothing so much as figures in a portrait by
some latter-day Grant Wood, this husband
and wife are busy pursuing their version of
the American dream in the desert on the
edge of Death Valley.
Their vision embraces a fruit farm and a
truck stop. And in the meantime, the Moores
are running a bordello.
Their story is told in "Angel's Ladies,"
conceived and directed by Doug Lindeman
and opening today at the Screening Room.
At times deadpan funny, at times earnest and
straightforward, at times revealing, at times
dull, occasionally instructive but never erotic,
this documentary possesses the dimensions
of a modest feature article. Its curiosity is
confined to the parched town called Beatty
in Nevada, a state where prostitution is legal.
Beyond the Moores, their so-called girls, a few customers and residents of Beatty,particularly
its Chamber of Commerce,which welcomes the brothel as a deterrent to crime and a
source of revenue, "Angel's Ladies" shows no interest in the wider reflection
of dispassionate expert opinionsof prostitution in general or legalized prostitution
in particular.
According to the film's publicity, MackMoore was 70 and Angel was 55 when they bought
out the previous owner several years ago after selling their interests in cemeteries
and funeral homes in Oregon and sampling retirement in Las Vegas.
Each previously married, they were, as Mack describes it, "swingers," accustomed
to sharingsex with others, before they sent the owner of Fran's Star Ranch into retirement.
"These girls are my kids," Angel says of their five prostitutes after telling
how two of her sons died.
|
Although some of the so-called kids are younger, the most vivacious
admits to being 55 and the house manager explains that they are independent contractors
who set their own prices. Mack notes that funeral homes and brothels are not so different
in that both are service industries.
From the standpoint of the Moores, the brothel is a little bit
of heaven on earth, with its hot tub and pool and the availability of long walks,
clothed or unclothed, in the sun-washed desert. Medical exams are provided and no
drugs or drinking are allowed.
The girls aren't so sure that the place is celestial. They're not
happy with their share of the revenue. They're not happy that they are not allowed
to own cars, or if they do, are supposed to surrender their keys. They're not happy
that Mack sometimes seeks their services and they're even less happy that when they
turn away a customer, either for lack of sufficient money or some other reason, Angel
makes herself available, an act she depicts as one of compassion and charity.
"It's a strange dichotomy," says one of the girls. "A Christian whorehouse."
ANGEL'S LADIES
Directed by Doug Lindeman; directors of videography, Brad Laven,
Mr. Lindeman and Rick Lunn; edited by Mr. Lunn; produced by Mr. Lindeman and Straw
Weisman; released by Cowboy Booking International. At the Screening Room, 54 Varick
Street, at Laight Street, TriBeCa. Running time: 80 minutes. This film is not rated.
WITH: Mack and Angel Moore and the girls: Kevin, Linda and Melody.
http://www.angelsladiesbrothel.com
|
The Village Voice:
by Amy Taubin
Sharing the Screening Room's documentary slot is the
lighter-weight Angel's Ladies,
Doug Lindeman's portrait of a mom-and-pop whorehouse in Beatty, Nevada, where
prostitution has been legal for long enough to make the city planning commission
declare it necessary for the economy and the health of its citizens.
When Mack Moore, a 70-year-old cemetery honcho, and Angel, his second wife, got
tired of carrying the weight of their past lives, they relocated from rainy Oregon
to
sunny Nevada. There, they bought Fran's Star Ranch, a small brothel located between
Death Valley and the Nuclear Weapons Testing Range, and renamed it Angel's
Ladies. Religious fundamentalists, the Moores viewed their new business as not very
different from their old one: Both enabled them "to service human needs."
With their Christian rationales, Mack and Angel seem a bit delusional. Not so the
three prostitutes who work for them: ranch hand and nature girl Kevin, middle-class
career woman Linda, and Melody, the most politically sophisticated, who's saving
her
money so she won't be "one man away from homelessness." There's more tell
than
show in the documentary, which eventually takes the form of an argument between
labor and management. The prostitutes fault Mack for trying to "date" his
own girls
("I didn't want to give the money to my competitors," he counters) and
Angel for
starting to turn tricks at age 55. But Angel believes she's merely "giving comfort"
to
the elderly and disabled who would otherwise be turned away by choosy "independent
contractors."
Crosscutting between the two sides, Lindeman gives everyone equal time. But
according to the head of the local health clinic, Angel's Ladies is doomed any way
you
look at it. With prostitution legalized, big corporations are eating the small-time
operations alive.
For information on availability of the documentary "Angels Ladies" or
speakers, please contact
Douglas Lindeman at 1.323.936.6677, fax 1.323.936.7101,
or: email: djlindeman@earthlink.com or
go to FILM
KITCHEN.com
Editech Consulting